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NCAA Football 14

As we pass the five-year mark of no NCAA Football, SB Nation's Richard Johnson takes a look at how no college football video game ultimately hurts the Madden NFL franchise, at least in one regard - namely, the option.

Throughout the years where EA Tiburon developed both NCAA Football and Madden NFL, gameplay aspects and features could be shared helping to make each game better. With the option being a part of the NCAA Football franchise dating back to its predecessor Bill Walsh College Football, the code and legwork has existed for EA to share and incorporate it into Madden NFL.

However, now that NCAA Football is on ice, the investment that would have been necessarily made for the plethora of teams that run some form of option football - traditional, RPO, spread, etc. - such as Georgia Tech, Navy, and Nebraska would have been added to Madden. Whereas now devoting the time for Madden to do solely for what amounts to situational (or gimmick) playcalls have proven not to be worth the monetary or time investment.

Johnson's article states that the Ravens with rookie QB Lamar Jackson will have zone-read plays in their playbook in Madden NFL 19.

As part of Court Justice: The Inside Story of My Battle Against the NCAA by Ed O'Bannon and Michael McCann, O'Bannon fires back at what he calls a ridiculous claim: that he is to blame for the end of college sports video games and namely the NCAA Football franchise.

"But the video game comment was the one that I got the most. To be honest, it kind of caught me off guard since it was so wrong and so ridiculous. Yes, it’s true that Electronic Arts stopped publishing college sports games after we led my lawsuit, but let’s think about the facts for a moment. ...

"If the NCAA had let EA pay us, all of you gamers out there would have your college sports games. So don’t blame me. Blame the NCAA for refusing to change its rules in the face of basic common sense, not to mention consumer demand."

It is worth nothing that under terms of the settlement, EA did not admit any wrongdoing. However, O'Bannon claims in this excerpt that EA "knew that it had used players’ images and likenesses without their permission."

Four years after reporting exiting the EA SPORTS College Football franchise following the aftermath of the player likeness lawsuit settlement, the Ohio State University has been sued by former Buckeye two-time All-American Chris Spielman and other former players over the use of their player likenesses.

Courtesy The Columbus Dispatch: Spielman also said attaching his name to Honda puts him in a difficult situation given a separate sponsorship deal he has with a local Mazda dealership. Spielman said he is fine with Ohio State using his name and likeness for non-commercial purposes. “You can slap your name and logo on banners all you want,” he said. “But as soon as you slap a corporate logo on there, I have rights, in my opinion, to say yes or no, or to negotiate that.”

On the July 12, 2017 edition of The Bottom Line with Mike'l Severe, former Arizona State and Nebraska quarterback Sam Keller was asked about his lawsuit versus EA SPORTS and the NCAA which proved to the death knell - along with the Ed O'Bannon lawsuit - for the NCAA Football franchise in fall 2013.

When asked by Severe if he accomplished what he hoped to as part of the lawsuit, Keller responded "...I think we did. I enjoyed it and really got behind the principle of why." He went on to add that "My small part of it kind of brought some things to light and kicked things in motion, but it was a small part of a bigger, bigger battle. I think we shed some light on some things and definitely accomplished what we set out to do, but again it wasn't to be a world-changing thing."

The questions regarding the lawsuit were very topical given they came during the same week NCAA Football would have typically been released. However, one has to wonder what was truly accomplished given the debate over 'should players be paid; is a free education enough' (as Keller asks in the interview) have not been seriously answered or addressed by the NCAA, conferences, or member institutions.
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This time of year is always hard for the die-hard NCAA Football fans. Typically the game would be releasing in the next few weeks and by now, impressions & videos would be coming out of the woodwork making the wait even harder. However, with the absence of NCAA, EA is using this window to talk about the upcoming Madden NFL 17 due out in a couple of months. As part of that, Madden's Creative Director, Rex Dickson was doing an interview at E3. As part of that, the question was asked about the return of NCAA Football.

In an interview with SI Now's Maggie Gray, Big East Commmissioner Val Ackerman stated that she believes the NCAA is currently reconsidering their stance on not allowing student athletes to sign endorsement deals.

Courtesy SI.com: Under the current rules, student athletes may not be paid for the use of their image or likeness or they would forfeit their amateur status and their collegiate eligibility could be affected. When Gray asked Ackerman why students shouldn’t be able to capitalize on the value they bring to their university, Ackerman responded that the NCAA is considering changing that rule.

“That’s one that’s actually under consideration I believe by the NCAA,” Ackerman said. “It’s actually a time right now where student athlete interests are being closely examined. I don’t have an answer for you on that one today but I will say that and a number of other topics are under review, and I think rightly by the NCAA and it’s very possible that over the course of the next year or two as these these ideas work their way through the legislative system you could see changes.”

According to lawyers for the plaintiffs in the player likeness lawsuit versus the NCAA, Electronic Arts, and the CLC, settlement payments as part of the $60M settlement are beginning to go out this week.

Pre-tax amounts ranging from less than $100 to nearly $9,300 will go to eligible players per terms of the settlement with the NCAA granting eligibility waivers to any current player receiving money. In all, 24,900 checks will be issued with the average payment around $1,750.

Among the current collegiate players set to receive payment are Maryland DB Jarrett Ross, Central Florida QB Nick Patti and Oklahoma State WR Marcell Ateman. Some of the NFL players receiving checks will be Kirk Cousins, A.J. Green, and Clay Matthews.

One of the in-game commentators in the NCAA Football franchise has now become one of the first - if not the loudest - voices in trying to get the franchise to return.

Analyst Kirk Herbsteit is not only hoping the series returns, he puts the blame squarely at the feet of Ed O'Bannon, whose class-action lawsuit helped lead to the (temporary?) end of EA SPORTS' NCAA Football franchise. In an interview with SECcountry.com, Herbstreit issued the following comments: “I was probably as devastated or more devastated than anybody in the country. I’ll do anything I can do to help be a part, to lead a cause, bring that game back.” ... "I can’t believe Ed O’Bannon took that game away from us.”

If Herbstreit is serious about helping to see NCAA Football return - which we believe he is - he should use his connections and weekly in-season meetings with Athletic Directors and athletic departments to push for schools/conferences to actually use their highly clamored for autonomy and establish player likeness rights for student-athletes. Since acquiring the rights to make some of their own rules, the Power Five conferences (ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, and SEC) and the NCAA have continued to punt on finally addressing this long-term issue. Until that issue (and likely all litigation) is settled, there is no little to no hope for the franchise returning.

Continue on to read an excerpt of SECcountry.com's interview with Herbstreit.
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Could this be a tease of the franchise returning? Was the page hacked? Or on the threshold of the National Championship Game, is this a reminder of the franchise and the many fans who want it to return?

We will update this story if any additional news or information is acquired.

During E3 2015, Microsoft announced backwards compatibility would be coming to the Xbox One in a gradual process with more titles being added over time. To help gauge interest on which titles should receive priority, Microsoft has established a nomination/voting system. Many NCAA Football fans have indicated a desire to play the title on a next-gen console. This is the opportunity to do so.

It is currently unknown if the franchise could be added due to its status in limbo due to lawsuits, but this opportunity should be taken to show EA, the NCAA, CLC, and universities that there is a strong demand for the product to return in some fashion.

Please spread the word to all of your NCAA Football playing friends!
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The original patent by White Knuckle IP, LLC in 2002 reflected a time when console games could not be updated easily, however patches/updates existed for PC gaming before 2002.

While NCAA Football included updated uniforms and field art, it is unknown what mid-season updates the Tiger Woods PGA TOUR franchise included. It seems that White Knuckle may be targeting these franchises as they would appear in some regards to be defunct - NCAA Football on hiatus at best (discontinued at worst) with Tiger Woods PGA TOUR skipping a 2014 calendar release to rebrand itself in 2015 as simply EA SPORTS PGA TOUR.

A true player and stadium/arena mid-season update system is included in almost every current sports title published today (by numerous publishers) and many with larger sales numbers than NCAA Football or Tiger Woods PGA TOUR. Perhaps the plaintiffs felt the need to attempt to reach a decision or settlement with these franchises before a potential statute of limitations was reached.
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We have now reached the second Tuesday of July, the date typically reserved for the release of EA SPORTS NCAA Football. However, multiple lawsuits and the changing landscape of college sports mean the end of the franchise as we know it.

Anyone 21 years of age or younger has grown up with NCAA Football being an annual summer release. The franchise became a tradition for many and as they grew, so did the game. Fans played it against friends and family, it became a battle for bragging rights in college dorms, and the addition of Online Dynasty allowed gamers from across the country to compete against each other.

While plans were in place and the development underway for EA SPORTS College Football 15, its cancellation made it the last college sports franchise to fall, joining the ranks of NCAA Basketball/March Madness, College Hoops, and MVP NCAA Baseball. Between licensing costs and lawsuits over the alleged use of player likenesses, college gaming will likely not return for some time, if ever.
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Two new uniform packs are now live in the NCAA Football 14 Uniform Store. The packs include numerous helmet, jersey, and pants options for schools such as Nebraska's "Unrivaled" uniform, UCLA's "LA Midnight" uniforms, Notre Dame's "Shamrock Series" uniform, and Maryland's "Red Pride" uniform.

Two new uniform packs are now live in the NCAA Football 14 Uniform Store. The packs include numerous helmet, jersey, and pants options for schools such as Tennessee's gray uniform, Western Kentucky's chrome helmet, and Texas A&M's black uniform.

Following the cancellation of a college sports title from EA SPORTS for 2014 - and likely indefinitely - there has been no shortage of news, albeit expected or bizarre. Here is a quick rundown of what has transpired since then.

This afternoon, Cam Weber (GM of American Football at EA SPORTS) announced that the company will not publish a college football title in 2014 and that the future of the franchise is in doubt. Weber stated that the company being caught in the dispute between the NCAA and student-athletes along with the NCAA & several conferences withdrawing support led to the decision. He also added that EA SPORTS is working to settle lawsuits with the student-athletes.

Later in the day it was announced that EA SPORTS had settled a series of class-action lawsuits. It is believed that the settlement will affect between 200,000 and 300,000 current and former college players. Terms of the settlement are confidential pending a court filing. From CBS Sports: The settlement affects lawsuits brought by former Rutgers quarterback Ryan Hart, former Nebraska and Arizona State quarterback Sam Keller and former UCLA basketball star O'Bannon. The settlement does not include the NCAA's ongoing battle with O'Bannon and other plaintiffs in the fight over the rights to player likenesses.

Continue on to read the full press release from Weber & EA SPORTS.
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The fourth NCAA Football 14 Uniform Store pack is available today. To purchase the pack, fire up the game and head into Team Management and then click on Uniform Store. The pack costs $1 on X-Box Live and $0.99 on PlayStation Network.

The third NCAA Football 14 Uniform Store pack is available today. To purchase the pack, fire up the game and head into Team Management and then click on Uniform Store. The pack costs $1 on X-Box Live and $0.99 on PlayStation Network.

The second NCAA Football 14 Uniform Store pack is available today. To purchase the pack, fire up the game and head into Team Management and then click on Uniform Store. The pack costs $1 on X-Box Live and $0.99 on PlayStation Network.

Team items in the pack include: new 2013 uniforms for Miami (OH), new helmets for Louisiana Tech (2013 & USA alternate), two sets of gloves for LSU, orange and black Pistol Pete helmets for Oklahoma State, and gloves for South Carolina and Texas Tech.

Regular updates are expected throughout the season. If you purchase this pack, let us know what you think of these new apparel options.
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